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Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)
Article detailing the decline and fall
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Anonymous
Different a-holes defend the public schools for political purposes |
Anonymous
Stupid logic. |
Anonymous
We defend our schools from relentless RW attacks because we value public schools and want all of our kids to succeed. |
Anonymous
Enrollment is dropping all over the DMV mostly due to demographic trends and (I assume less immigration). Fairfax, like all of the counties has been in decline for years due to rising poverty rates and skyrocketing numbers of kids identified with special needs. We are hit harder than other metro areas because we have county systems. When poverty rates were low and nobody cared about whether special needs kids were actually getting an education, our schools flourished under a county system. Now a county system is a liability if you are MC or above and have a typical kid. |
Anonymous
Be honest. There are lots of people engaging with you here who have kids you desperately hope fail. You are so nasty, dismissive and tribal that it actually makes me wonder what kind of trauma, anxiety or shortcoming you are compensating for. Knowing what some of the underlying issues are, I feel genuinely bad for you and because the words you say here don't impact the truth or what I can do for my kids, I actually hope it brings you whatever you are seeking. At least then it will be for some purpose. |
Anonymous
I don’t think people are fleeing FCPS en masse for religious and charter schools - it’s not inner city Chicago or the Deep South. But I’m concerned that the budget continues to increase while student enrollment is decreasing. I used the enrollment numbers from January of this year and compared to the end of year yearly enrollment provided above and came up with this: at the end of last school year 24-25, FCPS enrollment in K-12 was 175,561 and the total with pre-K was 180,559. As of January 2026, enrollment in K-12 was 171,747 and enrollment with pre-K included was 176,938. There is some conjecture that the enrollment drops are actually worse in lower income and higher ESOL areas (which tend to be one and the same in FCPS and many suburban districts). This theory is also supported by the fact that ESOL has seen de-staffing and ESOL teachers moved to teach regular grades or subject areas. There was just a thread on this a few weeks ago on here. So if anything, the declines should be in a student population that is more expensive to educate. But the budget is still going up. Why is that? It’s worth asking. The schools should be good stewards of taxpayer money. BTW I have no problem with the purchase of the new HS at this point. I think it is needed. I just think that in 5-10 years when the enrollment is even lower due to continual lower birth rates and an aging population, FCPS is going to have to make some tough choices and it’s going to become an issue sooner rather than later. Districts which have REALLY seen enrollment drops are under pressure from teacher groups and advocacy groups to keep schools open and not consolidate them even if the school is half empty. |
Anonymous
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The FCPS School Board is a travesty, and I put the blame squarely at the feet of the local Democratic machine, which puts its own self-aggrandizement ahead of actual problem-solving (and I say this as a staunch progressive/liberal/whatever you want to call it). Reid may be fine, or she may be horrible - but it's a fact that she was the strongest applicant the County received, so we should be asking *why* better candidates aren't interested in leading the school system. Is it the size? The board? The parents? All of the above?
Gatehouse is bloated, but no more so than any other large business in the area. Cutting a few dozen positions and letting others go through attrition won't meaningfully move the budget needle. The special education and legal budgets will continue to grow as long as parents continue to press for more and more specialized services for their children, and this will come at a cost to the general education population. If you actually tracked the redistricting committee's work and still think it was an attempt to move high performers into lower-performing schools, I just...don't even know what to say to you. |
Anonymous
Why are you comparing it to those other school systems, though? Other than being neighboring jurisdictions geographically, how are they comparable? Once again, you're throwing out "facts" as if the conclusion from them should be obvious on its face without making any actual arguments to back up your claims and insinuations. Did Stephanie survey FCPS and ex-FCPS parents to determine the reason they left FCPS? |
Anonymous
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Many people, including regular posters on this site, see a diminishing pool of acceptable schools in FCPS. They also see rising taxes with decreasing enrollment. They see the cost of housing in Fairfax and look elsewhere (geographically, like Loudoun).
Wealthy can be selective and choose pyramids that are still acceptable, either in Fairfax or Arlington. Langley, Oakton, Madison, McLean, Yorktown. They can also go private. Other middle class residents try to cram into a few other acceptable schools (West Springfield, Chantilly, Lake Braddock). Other middle class may choose the homeschooling option or stretch their budgets to do private (at least for K-8). So a number of pyramids in FCPS (Herndon, Lewis, Mt. Vernon, Annandale, West Potomac, Edison, Falls Church, Justice, ...) are being left with a population that is both poorer and substantially English Learners. Some worse than others. These schools are being avoided as described in the way listed above (other geographic choices, private, or homeschool). The ONLY thing that has kept some of their enrollments as high as they are is immigration. Domestic migration in Fairfax is negative. President Trump successfully controlling the border will likely reduce the number of poor English learners added to FCPS (at least for the next three years). Maybe that will help. But it will also likely decrease the poorer schools enrollment further. Will we see our taxes go down? Will they consider closing schools in some parts of the county? The increasing poverty and drop in enrollment in FCPS is simply a fact. It is caused by the above and a general demographic trend. I don't see it reversing any time soon. |
Anonymous
Yup. To wit: "And the Daily Signal was created by the Heritage Foundation, the same people who crafted Project 2025, which is systematically being deployed to destroy our country." Sit down. |